Star Wars: Age of Republic – Obi-Wan Kenobi #1 Review

Star Wars: Age of Republic – Obi-Wan Kenobi #1

Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Jody Houser
Pencilers: Cory Smith, Wilton Santos
Inker: Walden Wong
Colorist: Java Tartaglia
Letterer: VC’s Travis Lanham
Cover Artist: Paolo Rivera

Review by Michael Farris, Jr.

Marvel’s Star Wars: Age of Republic line continues with Obi-Wan Kenobi as he struggles to understand what it means to be a good teacher to his new Padawan, Anakin Skywalker. The Jedi Council gets word of a historic Jedi artifact found in an archeological dig on a distant planet. Obi-Wan is sent to retrieve the holocron before pirates can steal it, and after some hesitation and convincing from Yoda, Obi-Wan decides to take Anakin with him. Will the mission help them understand each other or drive them apart?

As you might be able to tell, the events of this book take place between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones. We get to see glimpses of Obi-Wan trying to find his footing as a mentor without the help of his master and a teenage Anakin trying to come to terms with his training being at a different pace than the other younger students. It’s interesting how—as disappointing as the aforementioned Star Wars movies were—it gave comic and TV writers ripe opportunities to fill in the gaps with some thought-provoking stories.

Houser does an adequate job fleshing out those details for a one-shot story. It might not be the most ground-breaking Star Wars story you’re going to get your hands on, but hardcore fans will appreciate it.

The artwork strikes a good balance of using incredible detail while still looking clean. There were a few inconsistencies in the way some of the characters looked—especially their faces. There were times Obi-Wan went from looking like Jesus to Zeus to one of the Three Musketeers, but it doesn’t distract from the story.

Verdict: Check it out.

As I said, hardcore Star Wars fans will enjoy this short story, and collectors will definitely want to add this to their Age of Republic library. However, if you stick strictly to the films, this probably won’t be the most memorable Star Wars comic for you.